New ‘Ghostbusters’ Photo Makes a Good Argument for the New ‘Ghostbusters’

There’s still quite a while to go until the July 15, 2016 release date of Paul Feig’s all-female Ghostbustersreboot, but the fires of fan anticipation must be continually stoked if they’re going to burn strong enough to last through the winter, and the wasteland of pop-cultural apathy that is the month of January. In an effort to head off that winter hubbub that can push movies that won’t be released for seven months to the back of the mind as we scramble to buy gifts, Feig and his cast have unveiled a the first official photo from the film hyping their new Ghostbusters.

Like most official promotional photos, it may seem straightforward, but in actuality is a rich combination of details and nuance. The dominant element of the image is the hypnotic, captivating green glow emanating from an unknown source at the center of the photo. Green-glowing crap has long been a key component of the Ghostbusters brand, and here, Feig reminds us of how criminally underused the color is by showing how distinctive its brightest hue can be.

After the viewer has soaked in all that glorious green, the eye is then drawn to the individual actresses’ faces, where they’re uniformly emoting a look I’d describe as “done with your nonsense.” The brilliance lies in the details, like Kate McKinnon’s slightly cocked head, or Melissa McCarthy’s akimbo-arm power stance. This is a movie about women who are strong, who will bust ghosts just as quickly as they’ll bust your ass for foolishness. It does leave one burning question, however: whence Slimer?